Lucca's is Not Only For Locals

Family dinners can often be horrifically stressful a challenge. We are a low key group--or maybe we aren't lowkey, maybe we are more the opposite--high stress neurotics--one giant Seinfeld episode. And one thing we all have in common is food. Going out is something my family only does on special occasions, so any excuse to have my parents pay for my dinner, ends with me spending hours on restaurant websites scanning menus and trying to decide on the perfect meal for the occasion. 

But like I said, we are "casual group," so for my dad's 50th birthday ( wink) I decided to counter my families stress with a comforting restaurant, close to the place I will soon no longer call home. Lucca's is female owned and operated, by Portlanders who know exactly what NEP families need; an affordable Italian restaurant with a comforting atmosphere and true Italian food. They are your classic neighborhood restaurant, tucked away just far enough, that only those living in a small radius knows about them. Lucca's however is too good to only serve locals and suddenly people will be coming from near and far to dine here.

Our waiter was incredibly knowledgeable about the food and wine and automatically recognized us from our Mother's Day dinner. He convinced us to get the seasonal antipasti of peaches wrapped in prosciutto, aside crostini with creamy goat cheese. Mmmm. A sinful combination of sweet, salty and tart. 

The antipasti plate was filled with thinly cut meats, roasted garlic, cheese, pâté, olives and Italian beans. 

 

We then took the waiters recommendation of the Arrbiatta Pizza, with Calabrian chilies, fresh garlic and crushed tomatoes, adding the sausage and farm fresh egg. Spicy and garlicky with a nice creamy affect when dipped in the egg yolk. Their stone oven was shipped from Italy. It knows how to make pizza.
 

Chicken under a brick

The Taglitelle with a classic meat ragu was the perfect comfort food and paired nicely with our Chianti Classico. 

Lastly, we were treated with a complementary dessert of Profiteroles filled with homemade caramel gelato, chocolate sauce and salted toffee brittle.